By Kombe Mataka
Divisions have erupted among Health Professions Association of Zambia after some members disagreed with the protest staged by unemployed doctors on Monday.
The consortium which constitutes of 13 health profession associations of Zambia.
Some named health profession associations including the Biological Scientists of Zambia, Radiological Society of Zambia and the Zambia Institute of Environment Health of Zambia yesterday asked Resident Doctors Association of Zambia (RDAZ) president who was until his resignation chairman of the Consortium to step down as he had gone against the the Association’s on the staged protest.
President of it the Biological scientists of Zambia Mumba Musonda said when she called in during the Diamond Live TV Programme on Wednesday, which was featuring Dr Sampa, Biomedical Union of Zambia Dinael Mwimbe Radiological Society of Zambia vice president Muleya Moshas and Zambia Institute of Environmental Health Haven Chitukutu, that Dr Sampa had left the Consortium after he was asked to step down by after the he backed the protest held by unemployed doctors under the association he presides over.
“The nature in which the RDAZ left the Consortium was actually saddening bit however , when we came together as a consortium , we came up with an agreement that whatever we were going to do, we would agree. Out agreement collectively was not to hold a protest. When we met as a consortium, we asked Dr Sampa to step down. We came to the conclusion that we needed to dialogue with the ministry of health. The protest was not going to be the best way to resolve this issue . So the breaking away of the doctors (RDAZ) was after a decision was made that the chairperson should step down following that protest which took place. We think. It was something personal,” she said.
And Consortium member Joseph Kamfwa who also joined the emotional debate through the phon said to that the Consortium did not approve with certain actions take by Dr Sampa the consortium chairperson then.
“For example , we agreed that we were supposed to meet to look into whether we can proceed with the a protest. We later agreed to give it time. Now to our surprise the doctors proceed with the protest before getting back to the consortium. We feel the protest paused a threat to the dialogue which we were beginning to creat with the Ministry of Information . It does not make alot of sense where a single profession comes out and demand that a certain number recruited,” he said.
“If you look you go back to 2013. There is a policy where private doctors who get engaged in private institutions get paid l. The interns are paid. But they are claiming that those who are volunteering are not paid. It is not true.”
He said all the professions registered under the Health Professions Act were all important.
“Looking at what our friends are doing, we do not think that it is for the benefit of the consortium. When we asked Dr Sampa to step back. He decided to leave the consortium before we could proceed further.”
But Dr Sampa responded saying that health minister Sylvia Masebo had been working with a few ministers of the consortium to frustrate the efforts of the entity in pushing for the recruitment of health workers.
“Any health worker understands the importance of time. We cannot work without a time frame . So whatever you are told . It has to be attached with some time frame,” Dr Sampa argued.
“It’s not true that the not true that the minister agreed to meet the consortium . People need to be honest . When the things started to unfolding where we we could write letters, the minister was not responding. By the way, we didn’t write two letters. The first letter we wrote was requesting for a meeting. The second one was after we had even gone to State House to meet the presidential aid to ask him if he could help us meet the minister because the minister was refusing to meet us . We were advised to go back and engage . We wrote another letter . The minister never responded . The only thing I received as chairperson of the consortium was some displeasure from the minister.
And Mwiinde said that some associations were dormant and could not speak for it’s ‘ suffering’ members like RDAZ and a few others were doing.
“It is so annoying that we see different tongues with the consortium when the goal is one,” he said.
“Engagements are failing. Where is the cowdice coming from? Is the minister intimidating anyone? If that was the case, they should have told us that they are being intimidated by the minister so that we help.”
And Chitukutu said the consortium had resolved to give the government more time after the minister engaged them on Monday as the doctor’s protest was going on.
“We are looking at the the overall picture. As Health practitioners, the way we are trained, we uphold. We uphold high ethical consideration,” he said.